


Poor Poor Pitiful Me

by Denois



Series: NurseyDex Week 2018 [3]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Awkward Flirting, Bad Flirting, Car repair, M/M, everyone hits on Nursey except Dex, small town
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-07-23
Packaged: 2019-06-14 18:44:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15395070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denois/pseuds/Denois
Summary: Nursey's borrowed car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Luckily the tiny town he stops in has a garage with a very capable mechanic. While he waits for the repair, everyone in town seems intent on getting to know him better. Why won't any of these men just let him be?NurseyDex Week 2018 Day 3 Alternate Universe





	Poor Poor Pitiful Me

**Author's Note:**

> Giant thanks to [b_frizzy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/b_frizzy) for the beta.
> 
> Sorry this is late and pushed the others back too. It fought me a bit.
> 
> This is inspired by the music video for Terri Clark's song "Poor Poor Pitiful Me". The song itself has some allusions to suicidal thoughts, so tw if you look it up.
> 
> TW: flirting that gets slightly handsy but no nonconsensual sexual touching occurs.

The car started making a weird clunking noise and Derek cursed. He was in the middle of nowhere, so of course the stupid borrowed car was going to break down. A sign indicated a tiny hole in the wall town was a short distance ahead and he really hoped he could make it that far. 

He was lucky. He not only made it to the town, but it had a garage that was still open. He managed to roll into the garage before the car sputtered and died. 

Derek climbed out of the car, rolling his head around to ease out the kinks. 

“Hey there! Sounds like this ol’ girl just gave her all to get you to us.” The booming voice was startling, but after turning, Derek realized it belonged to a man large enough to fit it. The man let his eyes wander up and down Derek. “Why don’t you step inside the office where it’s cool and Dex’ll take a look at the car for you?” 

The man held open the door to the shop and Derek moved to follow. Then he stumbled as another man walked around the end of the shop, wiping his hands on a towel.

“Hey Dexy! Got a new machine for you to fix. I’m just taking, uh, I didn’t catch your name, handsome.”

Derek tried to pull his eyes away from the man called Dex and blinked towards the giant a few times. “Uh, Derek. Derek Nurse.”

“I’m taking Derek into the shop here to cool down.” The giant wrapped an arm around Derek’s shoulders and ushered him through the door. “He’ll get you fixed up real nice. He’s a whiz with cars.”

“Oh, chill.” Derek paused and looked at the man again, his gaze finally falling on the name embroidered on the work shirt. “Thanks, Adam.”

A loud laugh made Derek flinch. “Man, no one ever calls me Adam. Call me Holster.”

“Sure, uh, Holster.” Derek dropped into a chair that Holster escorted him to. 

Holster dropped onto the desk next to him and flashed a blinding smile full of large teeth.

“Oh, hey there! Car trouble huh? That’s the worst. What’s your name? What brings you to Kettleman Crossing? Are you staying long? Are you thirsty?” Another man poked his head out from behind Holster. His wide eyes were inviting and curious as he spouted questions.

“Hey, hi. Derek Nurse. Just here for the car. And yeah? I guess.” 

“Swawesome!” Holster boomed, leaning between the new man and Derek. “That’s a great idea, Tango. You wait here, Derek, and I’ll just go grab some drinks, yeah?”

Holster moved over to a vending machine on the other side of the small office. He turned to look at Derek and grinned before hitting it with the end of his fist twice in quick succession. The machine ejected two cans which he swept up before returning to settle back on the edge of the desk.

Derek took the can gratefully. It had been awhile since his last stop and he was thirsty. He glanced at Holster and Tango from the side of his eye and considered that maybe not in the same way they were, though. The two were blatantly ogling him and it was actually kind of disconcerting. He was used to getting attention, but weren’t they supposed to be working?

“Thanks.” He lifted the can towards Holster in a pseudo-toast and then carefully popped it open. Immediately he was covered in spewing liquid as the beverage sprayed all over his face and chest. 

Holster and Tango sprung into action, grabbing nearby shop towels and patting him dry, and honestly, probably spending more time than was necessary drying his chest and stomach. Derek’s protests that he could handle it were completely ignored.

“Oh no, looks like it got on your pants too.” 

Derek’s eyes widened and he was about to physically push them away when the bell on the door jingled and they froze.

“Tango, Holster, do not sexually harass the customers.” Dex’s voice cut through the room and made the other two take a few steps away, much to Derek’s relief. “Mr. Nurse, it looks like the distributor bolt came loose and now the timing is off. Not a big problem, I’ll just have to retime it and you’ll be good to go. It’ll probably take about an hour.”

Derek felt the corner of his mouth quirk up. “Can you tell me what would the correct ignition timing be on a 1955 Bel Air Chevrolet, with a 327 cubic-inch engine and a four-barrel carburetor?”

Dex looked at him for a few seconds before blinking. Then his face softened. “That’s a bullshit question. Chevy didn’t make a 327 in ‘55. However, in 1964, the correct ignition timing would be four degrees before top-dead-center.”

Holster groaned. “You skipped most of the speech. Totally ruined it, bro.”

Derek shrugged. “He’s acceptable.”

Dex stopped and looked at his coworkers before meeting Derek’s gaze again. “You might be more comfortable at the diner across the street. They probably won’t try to feel you up over there.” He paused again. “Well, probably.”

“Wonderful. Can I get into the car actually? Even with the - enthusiastic - assistance of these two fine men, my shirt is quite damp and the stain is probably setting as we speak.” Derek looked up at Dex hopefully. Looking at Dex wasn’t really a hardship. So far everyone in this town seemed to be attractive, and the fact that Dex’s gaze didn’t drop below his face until he’d made that comment, and then only for a moment. Well, it was strangely nice.

“Ayuh. Sure thing. Whiskey at the diner might have something for the stain.” Dex held the door open for him and then followed Derek out towards the car.

Derek leaned into the back seat for his suitcase, unzipping it quickly and pulling out a shirt and some jeans. Tango was right, the liquid had gotten to his pants and he might as well be comfortable for the rest of the trip. 

When he stood back up, he noticed Dex looking pointedly at the engine, but there was a flush creeping up his neck. Dex had definitely been standing behind him when he’d leaned in, that may have been why he’d done so in the first place. 

Hey, just because he didn’t want to be ogled without permission didn’t mean that he was above flirting.

The shirt was sticking to his chest and getting really annoying, so he pulled it off and used the dry back to make sure his chest was dry. No point in ruining the clean one. Once he was sure that he was as dry as possible, he pulled the clean shirt on, tugging it slightly where it was tight. 

He tucked the rolled up jeans under one arm, it would definitely be pushing public indecency to change those beside his car, and dropped the ruined shirt into the back floorboard. He wasn’t actually worried about the stain. 

He turned towards the diner slowly, pausing to notice that the blush had completely covered Dex’s face, turning it a bright red. Derek smirked to himself and looked both ways before jogging across the highway.

The diner didn’t look like it has been updated since the 50s. Two workers watched him enter and one flashed a large grin his way, showing off cheekbones sharp enough to cut diamonds. 

“Hey, is there a bathroom I can use to change my pants?” Derek lifted the jeans slightly in indication.

The smiling man let his eyes wander down Derek’s body. “Yeah, I can see why you’d want to get those pants off. Wouldn’t we all?” 

Derek stumbled slightly. Luckily, he was saved by the other worker nodding towards a door to his left. “Over there. You want me to get something started for you? Sausage?”

The man’s face had remained impassive, but his words still made Derek pause, like they were suggestive somehow. He blinked a few times. “No. That’s chill. I’ll take a look at a menu when I get out. Thanks.”

Derek locked the bathroom door behind him and checked the two stalls before quickly shedding his pants and pulling the clean pair on. He paused to wash his hands and make sure his chest was completely cleaned off before returning to the dining area.

He slid into a booth and the smiling man was at end of the table before he even had a chance to pull out the menu and look it over. 

“I’m Ransom, anything you want, just let me know. Even if you want to go-” He paused and licked his lips. “Off menu.” The grin spread across his face again.

“Chill. Actually, I think I’ll take a grilled cheese, curly fries and some lemonade. Thank you.” Derek closed the menu and smiled at the man, Ransom. He guessed that made the stoic man Whiskey. The people in this town had some really weird names. 

They were also criminally attractive, which would normally not be a problem. Even the aggressive forwardness would normally not be a problem. If it wasn’t the entire town.

Except for Dex, who seemed to be the only one in the town focused on getting his job done first. Derek cursed his responsibility kink. 

He looked out the window and watched the man in question as he worked, letting the words of the other two men flow over him without registering any of it. Dex seemed completely invested in the work on the car. 

The bell on the door rang and pulled Derek’s attention back to the diner. 

“Oh wow, what a beaut!” The newcomer was staring at Derek and rubbing his mustache. He slid into the booth across from Derek and grabbed his hand away from the fries. “You should be in a magazine. I should know.” He pulled a business card out of his suit pocket with the other hand and then pressed it into Derek’s.

Derek extricated his hand and looked at the card. 

B. “Shitty” Knight  
Agent  
Duan Models

“Shitty?” Derek raised his brows in disbelief.

“That’s what they call me. But trust me, it is not a statement on my abilities.” He paused and twitched his mustache. “On any of my abilities.”

“Shitty, stop bothering my customers. Maybe you should just get something to go.” Whiskey was standing by the table.

Shitty waved a hand. “Whiskey’s just upset because I keep trying to get Tango from the body shop over there to move into the city and be a model for me. Whiskey, make me that burger I like, won’t you? And send Ransom over. Him and this beaut together, my day will be made.” Shitty waggled his eyebrows at Derek.

Derek glanced out the window and noticed Dex shutting the hood of the car. “Well, looks like my Challenger is ready to go. So, could I get a bag or something for the rest of my fries?” Derek smiled at Whiskey.

Before Whiskey could move, Ransom sidled up next to him and placed a bag on the table, allowing his fingers to brush against Derek’s hand. “A Challenger, eh? Love a good pony car.” 

Whiskey snorted. “Is that why you’re always trying to get Holster to take you for a ride, then?”

“It’s, uh, it’s actually not a pony car.” Derek looked around at their confused faces and back down as he poured the fries into the bag. “It’s a 1982, so second generation Challenger. They weren’t pony cars like first and third generation. I know, I was just as disappointed when I borrowed it.”

Derek took advantage of their confusion and dismay to throw some money on the table and slip past them and back over to the garage. 

Luckily, he was able to get through paying for the repair with minimal suggestive looks and comments from Holster and Tango. He paused to throw the pants from earlier into the backseat and then opened the front door. 

“Sorry about those guys. You’d think they’d never seen an attractive man before.” Dex’s voice surprised Derek until he followed the sound and saw him leaning against the side of the building by some tires, wiping his hands off on a rag.

“Oh, chyeah. Thanks for fixing up the car. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you.” Derek smiled and licked his lips. 

Dex lifted a hand and nodded.

Well, time to leave. Derek climbed into the car and started driving towards the highway. He slammed on the brakes before he reached the road. The window rolled down slowly and he reached his hand out, making a “come on, then” gesture. 

A few moments later, the passenger door opened and Dex slid into the seat. His face was flushed, but he shot a smile at Derek as the car pulled onto the highway.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and Comments are love.
> 
> You're also welcome to say hi on Tumblr at [SexyDexyNurse](sexydexynurse.tumblr.com) where you can shoot me asks and such.


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